No Trailers, Please

July 7, 2022

Gene, Ash, and Big D,

On the YouTube page, I read your response, which goes:

Disagree. We specifically said in the Season 4 preview that anything released by HBO is fair game. It’s information the artists behind the show would like the viewers to have.

Here is my reply, which I also left on the YouTube page.

I lament this decision of yours.

First of all, please do not confuse the release of trailers for an artistic act. It is purely a commercial act; indeed, a trailer is literally a commercial seeking to persuade people to watch the show. This is not a bad thing; attracting people to the show is worthwhile. But note that, just as William was told “the maze is not meant for you”, the trailers are not meant for us (where “us” = “the people who need no persuading to watch”).

The artistic act is that which is done by the director, who arranges the scenes in a particular order. Viewers are meant to see the scenes in that order only.

You cannot possibly claim that your viewing experience is improved by watching trailers. A trailer inherently contains some form of spoiler, the only question being how large. This may be a good tradeoff for the sake of luring new viewers. But for viewers who are going to watch anyway, trailers impose a cost while returning no benefit.

After seeing a trailer, a viewer’s expectations are irrevocably changed. For instance, you mentioned the appearance of Bernard in the trailer for next week’s episode. Someone who has not seen the trailer would go into that episode not knowing whether Bernard will appear. The trailer spoils that surprise. Multiply this by every single plot point that is revealed beforehand in a trailer.

While we will all watch these episodes multiple times, I must stress again that a viewer gets only one chance to see an episode for the first time. That experience is special. And to insist on having that experience by seeing the scenes in the order that the director intended is not wrong.

If you as an individual cannot resist indulging your curiosity by seeing some scenes out of order, that is your prerogative. But please know that, for a set of viewers, the revelation of the information from these out-of-order scenes damages the viewing experience.

So, if the policy of the podcast is going to be to touch on these things from the trailers, I ask that you have the consideration to give appropriate warnings. Either put trailer-related discussion at the end of the podcast episode so that it can be avoided by listeners who don’t want that information, or at least please give an announcement of “spoiler alert” so that the listener can skip ahead a minute or so in the podcast.

Still, I again implore you to follow the policy of Dave Chen’s Decoding Westworld podcast, and to discuss only the episode while leaving the future reveals alone. But, if you insist on continuing to discuss trailers, then I ask you to take into account the set of fellow fans for whom that information is unwelcome.

Your podcast is excellent. Unlike with some shows, where listening to podcasts is just an extra, with Westworld, listening to podcasts is essential. And this podcast is just about the very best at giving the necessary analysis of things that a viewer might miss in this complex show.

So it is most unfortunate that a podcast which contributes so much to enhancing the Westworld viewing experience also has a role in harming that experience.

If you cannot see your way clear to altering your policy on trailer-related spoilers (even by the small act of delivering a warning announcement beforehand), then I’m afraid that I as a listener will have to adopt the practice of listening to your podcast one episode late. I really hope that I will not have to do that, and that you will agree to accommodate the segment of fans who want to see the scenes only in the intended order.

Ferdinand Cesarano
New York

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